What It Looks Like to Be Borne upon Eagles' Wings (2021.02.13 Pastoral Letter and Hopewell Herald)

Dear Congregation,

This year, I’ve been using Ben Shaw’s reading plan, which brought me this week through Exodus 19. v4 amazed me, “You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself.”

The second half of that verse is a pretty interesting way to describe the time since His destruction of the Egyptians at the Red Sea to their arrival at Sinai. It had taken them all of three days to complain that they were dying of thirst (end of ch15), then a few more weeks to complain that they were dying of hunger (ch 16), then ready to kill Moses and go back to Egypt from thirst again (first half of ch17), then the Amalekites had made war upon them (second half of ch17).

All of this had happened in just three months (19:1)! This is what it’s like to be borne by Yahweh on Eagles’ wings?

There’s probably some joke to be made here about the comparative length of time that it took to make the rest of the trip to Canaan, but what stands out is how marvelously patient God is with His sinful people.

Indeed, He bears us along despite much wicked unbelief and complaining in our hearts (or even with our mouths). Not only is He perfectly executing His plan for bringing us to complete and everlasting blessedness in glory, but along the way all of the mishaps are ultimately part of His bearing us upon on eagles’ wings.

And a big part of that bearing us upon eagles’ wings is His patience with us, and His faithfulness to correct and sanctify us. If we are believers, then our merciful God is absolutely determined to produce in us that holiness without which we will not see Him.

So, let us rejoice over the ordinary means of grace in His public worship! Yes, trial is part of what He providentially uses to sanctify us. But, He has especially appointed the means of grace as the actions by which He magnifies Himself, and gives us fellowship with Himself, in our assemblies. So, He has filled His worship with the very instruments by which His Spirit produces faith in us to join us to Christ and to grow us by the grace of Christ and the knowing of Christ.

In Him Who bears us upon eagles’ wings,

Pastor

 

LORD'S DAY – February 14, 2021 

9:50 a.m. Breakfast Line Opens

10 a.m. Sabbath School
This week, we’ll be studying WCF 13.3, Sanctification: Progress and Perseverance

 

11 a.m. Public Worship

▫Children’s Catechism for Feb 14
Q68. How is Christ a king? A. Because He rules over us and defends us. 

▫Shorter Catechism for Feb 14
Q76. Which is the ninth commandment? A. The ninth commandment is, Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor. 

Psalms and Hymns
TPH446 “Be Thou My Vision”   
ARP125 “All, Like Mount Zion, Unmoved Shall Endure” 
TPH73C “In Sweet Communion, Lord, with Thee” 

Scripture Text for first portion of worship service
Psalm 73 

Scripture Readings and basis for confession of sin and petition for help
2Samuel 3:12–39
Luke 13:1–9 

Sermon Scripture text and topic
We will be hearing from Genesis 45:16–46:4 about The God Who Mercifully Assures Us of His Plan and His Presence 

Baptism! 

Lord’s Supper! 

1 p.m. Coffee Fellowship and Catechism Class 

1:15 p.m. Fellowship Lunch & Open Mic Time
Members are encouraged to bring way more than enough, so that there will be plenty for everyone, including any members or guests who are deciding last-minute whether or not to stay. 

At open mic time, we’ll begin with birthdays and anniversaries and recitations of the memory verse:
Genesis 46:3–4, So He said, “I am God, the God of your father; do not fear to go down to Egypt, for I will make of you a great nation there. I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also surely bring you up again; and Joseph will put his hand on your eyes.” 

2:30 p.m Psalm/hymn Sing

3:30 p.m. Evening Sermon from
Philippians 1:9–11, Praying for Christian Love That Grows Continually, Definitively, Superlatively, Organically, and Doxologically 

Hopewell this Month 

Hopewell’s Presbytery Prayer Focus for February
Lincoln Memorial ARP Church in Fayetteville, TN 

February Psalm of the Month
ARP125 All Like Mount Zion, Unmoved Shall Endure 

Upcoming Events

•Wednesday, February 10, Prayer Meeting. 6:30p.m. in the Fellowship Hall. We pray for a solid hour, splitting into groups to balance praying corporately with giving everyone an opportunity to pray out loud as much as possible.
•February 14, Annual budget meeting
•February 15, Elders’ Meeting, 6 p.m.
•February 20, Leadership (men’s and boys’) breakfast, 6:30 a.m.
•February 26, HCCFS presentation day, 7p.m.